He was out there v Cinci for a few plays so he's not injured. I'm pretty sure he's just getting passed on the depth chart.

For being more slight in frame, Gentry looked like a better run blocker than Bunting and has just as much upside if not more in the receiving category. His blocking was especially prominent on the long Isaac sweep play down the sideline.

While I agree he's not injured, he may be (or have been) hurt which is/was limiting his success. I only say this to say that health along with effort, talent, technique, attitude, etc. are all still viable factors in the necessarily wildly speculative theories for his unexpected absence.

The Iggy Pop- A skillet made with sautéed onion, green pepper, tomato, ham, andouille sausage, and hash browns; topped with cheese blend, two fried eggs, two strips of bacon, and a dash of tabasco sauce. Served with a biscuit.

It's a joke that suggests, in response to the notion that someone can't do something -- or that something has already been done in a way that cannot be done worse -- that the current beer drinker can and will.

1) Max protect has been near default when Speight drops back, and he's still getting pressured. What's gonna happen when three TE's go out?

2) The TE's that have caught passes have caught the same passes. How many routes have they perfected? Besides, I doubt that any freshmen - redshirt, or not - are setup for a redzone route to TD territory by game 2...

1) Max protect is a protection scheme not a formation. If you're in a multiple tightend formation, the tightends are in place of backs/wide receivers. Therefore, one could still use max protect whilst also having tightends in routes.

2) "are set up for a redzone route to TD territory" - the problem with this statement is two-fold

2a) TD territory has a name, the endzone

2b) How long do you think it takes to grasp route running? A redshirt freshman should have a pretty good handle on it after a full year in the program. How many true freshman tightends are we playing?

WIDE open in the middle of the field on one play against Cincy. I believe it was the 3rd quarter. Bunting could have caught the ball and knitted a sweater before anyone got to him. Thankfully, Speight found a way to not see him.

I thiiiink you're being sarcastic? If not then I'd argue you can't deny the impact their two huge plays had in their respective games. Explosive, game changing plays both. And both showed great size, speed and talent running, albeit on one play. There are just so many play makers on this offense that they will necessarily get few offensive touches as Harbaugh tries to build a balanced, multi-faceted offense to compete with OSU. But for sure their packages will come out when necessary and probably at the right time, and they will be expected to execute. So far they have. So I think the TEs have already impacted both games by flipping field position, loosening the defense and setting up scoring opportunities. Admittedly I don't know how they've done blocking-wise.